When Texas eventer Rebecca Brown told us she had been selected to compete on the U.S. dressage team at the 2013 Maccabiah Games — think Jewish Olympics — we jumped at the chance to have her blog about the experience. Visit www.RBriding.com and www.maccabiah.com for more info on Rebecca and the Games.
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All good horse show photos have a porta potty in the background. Photo by Harley Cozewith.
From Rebecca:
Wow — time flies when you’re in the middle of show season. Rolex and Badminton have come and gone and now we are getting closer to the next major equestrian competition: the 2013 Maccabiah Games! OK, probably not the next MAJOR equestrian competition, but certainly the newest and potentially most exciting INTERNATIONAL equestrian competition. We fly to Israel July 10, and competition starts around July 20, so it will be here before we know it! So, what has happened since I last blogged?
First of all, we have a new member to the show jumping team — a face that many will recognize and another fellow eventer (YAY!): Alexa Perkiel. Alexa has signed on to the team recently, and we are so excited to have her. To find out more about her, please click here. She is just beginning her journey to the Maccabiah, so there will be much more to come on her journey in later posts!
Secondly, I have good news and bad news on my part. The good news: I have been approved to compete for the U.S. in Israel. The bad news: my original request to compete in Iceland was denied. Lesson learned: use computers, not iPhones, when sending in important documents. Just like any international competition, the riders for the show jumping and dressage teams had to apply to the USEF for permission to compete abroad. Apparently, I need to study my country abbreviations. Luckily for me, Courtney Barnett from USEF caught my mistake and approved my application for Israel. So, one bullet dodged!
Alexa Perkiel. Used with permission from the USEA, www.useventing.com
In March, I held a fundraiser with all my family, friends, and clients to raise money for the trip. It is going to be quite costly between all the travel and horse rentals. Maccabi USA is funding a good portion of it, but all riders are required to raise a certain portion, called a “Yachid.” We had a great time, ate too much Mexican food, and managed to raise all the funds in one night (huge thanks to everyone!).
Through the bets placed on my exceptional limbo skills, I sealed my passage to Israel. I ended up winning my age division (13 years and up), although I nearly ended my Maccabiah career prematurely. Only 13 year olds are built to bend that way! It’s like that time you slip-and-slided when you were 15, trying to relive your youth, and realized you were too large to be throwing yourself on the ground in an effort to slide 10 feet through the grass … only 13 year olds are the size to do it without injury! There’s a reason the package says “for ages 13 and under,” folks! It’s possible that I was the only person over 13 years old who took part in the limbo contest, but no one needs to know that and, sorry, all photos have been burned.
Since my last EN update, our Equestrian Coordinator Sloane Milstein has traveled to Israel to scope out the competition facilities, help to finalize competition plans, and, most importantly, find us horses to ride! When we were selected for the team, we were given the option to bring our own horses to ride. Because this is the first year that the competition is being held, all the riders elected to borrow horses for the inaugural competition. At the time, it was uncertain where the competition was going to be held, and, therefore, the quality of the facilities was in question. The Maccabi Federation has great plans for the future of the equestrian sports but, for the time being, it is definitely an adventure! While there is still much up in the air, here is what I do know:
• The competition will be held in a format similar to college-style riding. There will be a draw for horses after Opening Ceremonies, followed by a short ride to get to know our horse. We will have two to three practice rides before the official competition starts. We will have a Welcome class, followed by two days of competition.
• The dressage competition will be held at the FEI Medium and Advanced level, and the showjumping will be held at 1.25-1.30m.
• My mother, Becky Brown, is the dressage coach, and Neal Shapiro is the showjumping coach.
• The facilities for the competition are brand new. It is being held at Kibbutz Yagur near Tel Aviv. The riding arena is already built, but the stables, exhibitor arena, lockers, etc. are under construction. HOWEVER, the good news is that the most important elements — the pool and nightclub — are already in place. Needless to say, I’m pretty stoked to find out what a Kibbutz nightclub is all about. I’ll be back with investigative reporting later …
• Competitors are coming from all over the world — the U.S., Europe, Australia, etc. It is a true international competition.
• The U.S. is sending around 1,100 people — athletes, coaches, medical staff, etc.
So, it should be a really fun competition and certainly a life-changing experience! It will be really neat to say that I took part in the inaugural year of this competition, especially if it becomes the caliber of equestrian competition that they are planning to make it! Please read along on my adventure. I’ll be blogging all the way to the podium. Go USA!
